Luna 24

NSSDCA/COSPAR ID: 1976-081A

Description

The last of the Luna series of spacecraft, the mission of the Luna 24 probe was the third Soviet mission to retrieve lunar ground samples (the first two were returned by Luna 16 and 20). After entering a 115 x 115 km lunar orbit with an inclination of 120 degrees, the probe landed in the area known as Mare Crisium (Sea of Crisis) at 12.7145 N, 62.2129 E on 18 August 1976. Using a sample arm and drill, the mission successfully collected 170.1 grams of lunar samples and deposited them into a collection capsule. The capsule was launched from the Moon at 5:25 UT on 19 August and landed at 5:55 UT on 22 August in western Siberia, about 200 km southeast of the town of Surgut, where the samples were collected for scientific study.

Spacecraft image for illustrative purposes - not necessarily in the public domain.